Daily Archives: July 22, 2018
F/V Dianne Tragedy: sole survivor Ruben McDornan calls for tighter commercial fishing safety laws
The sole survivor of a dive boat disaster that claimed the lives of six men has accused the government of turning its back on commercial fishermen, calling for more stringent safety monitoring of boats. Ruben McDornan, the only surviving crew member from the FV Dianne, which sank off the coast of Queensland last year, says fishermen are dying unnecessarily because no government authority wants to take responsibility for their safety. “If six people had died in a mine, or in any other workplace on land, there would be uproar,” McDornan told 60 Minutes. >click to read<21:48
Stonington fishermen to hold open house on Saturday at Gambardella’s Wholesale Seafood at the Town Dock
The town’s commercial fishermen will hold an open house from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 28, at the Gambardella’s Wholesale Seafood location at the Town Dock. The event is being billed as an opportunity for residents to meet fishermen, local retailers and restaurants and find out what types of seafood are for sale locally this time of year and how the fish are processed and prepared for the local market. There will be an opportunity for people to go aboard a working fishing boat and learn how it operates as well as meet fishermen, ask them questions and learn what issues are concerning to them. >click to read<17:32
Here’s why ice was a hot commodity in the Nushagak this summer
Bristol Bay’s Nushagak fishing district pulled in more than a million sockeye on eight separate days earlier this month. Before this summer, it had only done that twice in Bristol Bay’s history.
Keeping all those fish cool proved problematic for fishermen who still rely on slush ice. Capt. Nick Sotiropoulos of the fishing vessel Flyin’ Tiger said he’d like at least 1,000 pounds of ice for every opener to keep his catch cold and earn that chilled quality bonus from his processor.,, Just over 10 percent of Bristol Bay’s fleet relies on ice to chill their fish. Another 27 percent turn over unchilled fish to processors, and the final 63 percent are drift boats with refrigerated sea water systems. >click to read<14:43
Seaforth man who fell off fishing vessel remembered for his ‘irrepressible spirit’
A 58-year-old Seaforth, N.S., man who fell off a fishing boat late Thursday night, is being remembered for his dedication to saving wild animals and his “irrepressible spirit.” Reid Steward Patterson was swordfishing about 65 kilometres off the coast of Halifax when he fell into the water. An exhaustive search by air and sea lasted 23 hours, but searchers weren’t able to locate his body. On Friday night, Joint Task Force Atlantic handed the search over to the Halifax District RCMP. Patterson was instrumental in the growth of Hope for Wildlife, a refuge for wounded animals in Seaforth. He was also the founder, Hope Swinimer’s, partner. >click to read<11:49
Search for man who fell overboard southeast of Halifax handed over to RCMP – >click to read<
Stop efforts to kill salmon and fishing jobs
Today, many Northern California commercial fishermen sit in harbors along our coast worrying about their bills and waiting for another disastrously shortened salmon season to begin. Many businesses that serve the normally robust sport salmon fishery also have suffered because of the delay. River fishing guides have lost half their season as well. Salmon numbers are predicted to be down from the lingering effects of the last drought and the damaging water allocation decisions that put salmon fishing families last. Meanwhile, San Joaquin Valley congressmen are hard at work tilting the balance of water in California toward valley agricultural barons. >click to read<10:48
This strange, lobster-fueled border dispute off Maine has been simmering long before Trump
The conflict was recently cast into international focus after reports that U.S. Border Patrol agents were stopping Canadian fishermen in the area, causing a modest uproar in the Great White North. It was likely the first time many Americans had even heard of Machias Seal Island, if the story broke through at all. Once dubbed the “Coldest War,” the quiet dispute over the tiny, meadow-topped island and its surrounding waters has been simmering for more than two centuries, consisting of puffins, lobster, and a few legendarily provincial Mainers. And this dispute has been festering since the Revolutionary War. >click to read<09:47
BASE Seafood Auction set to unveil revolutionary software to buoy groundfish industry
In his dimly lit second floor office surrounded by artifacts of the past, from antique license plates to model fishing vessels to family photos, Richie Canastra resurrected memories of the fish auction. “You know many people said I was crazy? I was young,” Canastra, the co-owner of the Buyers and Sellers Exchange (BASE). Canastra and his brother Ray, started the Whaling City Auction in 1994 when the city-owned auction ended. The display style auction crafted by the brothers caused friction within the industry. It promoted a buyer beware attitude, which forced buyers to pay what they bid, unlike the old system, when buyers often altered their bid after they won by questioning the quality of the landing. >click to read<09:01
